Applying for a personal loan? Here is a step-by-step process

That Europe trip can be a reality. Here’s how

Buy the perfect laptop on no-cost EMIs

There are numerous financial firms in the market, which makes it that much harder for you to pick one that best suit your interests and needs. Whether it is procuring a personal loan for a wedding or investing in mutual funds, you need to have the assistance of a firm which has your best interests at heart. However, before taking a final decision towards choosing a firm, you should focus on the factors that determine its trustworthiness.

Multiple Investment Options

A good firm will provide its clients with a wide range of investment avenues. This is important as it provides you with several options to choose from. For instance, lenders like Bajaj Finserv offer over 20 diversified products across 12 distinct product lines.

Understanding the Risks

When you apply for a personal loan for long travel, you need to know about the consequences that might follow if you fail to adhere to the agreement terms. Or in another case, if you have invested in mutual funds, you should be aware of what you could lose if the market crashes. A good financial firm always goes out of its way to acquaint you with the basic risks involved, before you make an investment. If the lender doesn’t make an effort to inform you about important concerns, then you should definitely find a new and more trustworthy firm.

Paying the Fee

Most financial firms charge a fee for the services they render. Before you make any long-term commitments, make sure you know what you need to pay for their services. You don’t want to sign the papers, only to later realise that you have a massive fee to cover.

Specialisation Matters!

There are some firms that may specialise in dealing with only a certain type of client. So find out their areas of expertise, and only approach them if they cover your areas of interest.

Communication is Important

Are you someone who wishes to communicate with your financial firm on a regular basis? Many firms meet their clients only during the initial stage. However, if you want to have frequent interactions, then you must convey this to the firm at the very beginning. If the establishment refuses to meet your terms, you should take your business elsewhere.

Online Access

In today’s world of computers, it is critical to associate with a firm that provides online access to your financial history. This help you keep track of your finances while on the move. For instance, Bajaj Finserv offers Personal Loans that come with all the necessary information, right from Personal Loan eligibility criteria to the documents required for a Personal Loan.

Better Infrastructure

Though online services are usually excellent across India, it is always a good idea to join hands with financial institutions that have a strong presence in the market. Bajaj Finserv has 150 branches and a presence in 7000 retail outlets across the country. This gives you the freedom to meet a financial expert, face-to-face, if you are ever in need of assistance.

To conclude, you must engage in business with a firm that best serves your interests. While finding one may not always be an easy task, the benefits will be worth all the effort.

When it comes to determining your loan worthiness, the importance of a credit score cannot be stressed enough. This is because a credit score is often the most important factor behind the approval or rejection of your loan application. Here, we’ll address all those nagging questions about what a credit score is, why it is considered important, and how to improve your credit score.

What is a Credit Score?
A credit score is a statistical representation of your creditworthiness. It is based on your credit history, which takes into account your loan repayments and an overall view of your finances. In India, credit scores are determined through CIBIL, the country’s first ever credit information company.

Why is a Credit Score Important?
If you have a good credit score there is a definite chance that a lender will offer you the desired loan amount, and perhaps a bunch of benefits too. This is because a good credit score is a direct indication of your loan repayment capabilities.

A good credit score can work wonders for you in several different ways.

Buying a House
Purchasing a house is probably one of the biggest financial decisions you will make in your adult life. A good credit score helps you get a home loan by making lenders more open to dealing with you. For instance, if you have a track record of maintaining a good credit score, lenders will look forward to offering you a loan. This is because a great credit score means the chances of you defaulting on a loan are minimal. Lenders like Bajaj Finserv offer Home Loans with low interest rates and instant approval.

Funding a Business
Any lending institution will first look into your credit scores before signing off on a business loan application. If you have a good credit score your chances of getting a loan will automatically increase. In case you are looking to finance your business, Bajaj Finserv offer Business Loans of up to INR 30 lakh with flexible payment options.

Getting Lower Rates of Interest
A low credit score forces lenders to charge you higher interest rates as they consider lending you money a risky proposition. But if you have a good credit score, banks generally tend to offer you a lower interest rate for the opposite reason.

How Do I Keep a Check on My Credit Score?
There are a number of ways to improve your credit score. All it requires is for you to follow these basic steps.

Repay Your Debts on Time
If you have any outstanding loans, you need to make sure that you follow the repayment schedule and make timely payments. Avoid making late payments as they can impact your overall score.

Avoid Unnecessary Credits
We know that a random call from a bank, offering an attractive deal on a credit card, may test your resolve. Make sure to stay away from such schemes as they can have a bad effect on your credit report. If you are keen on applying for a new line of credit, Bajaj Finserv offer Credit Cards with multiple reward point programmes.

Clear Your Bills
Your history of bill payments makes up about 35% of your credit score. So prompt payment of bills will help you gain the confidence of lenders, as the payments positively reflect on your credit report.

Improving your CIBIL score is quite an easy task, especially if you make carefully weighed decisions and exercise a certain discipline with regard to your finances.

Weddings are huge in India, we love to celebrate the union of two souls in absolute grandeur. Funding a dream ceremony can be quite a task. If you and your beloved’s special day is drawing closer, you might have your hands full, budgeting for the occasion. Luckily there are options that will help ease the load.

Why You Need a Loan for Your Wedding

Weddings are not cheap. You will need to finance the catering service, rings or mangalsutra, decoration, entertainment, venue, photography, clothes, and the honeymoon. This will amount to quite a lot of money and that’s part of the reason why you need to budget the entire affair.

Research says that the amount spend on a wedding usually exceeds your initial budget by almost double. Couples and their families often forget to consider post-wedding expenses (an apartment, the honeymoon, etc.) and end up strapped for cash. In this case, it would be wise to take up a loan to fund at least some aspects of your wedding. Lenders like Bajaj Finserv, offer Personal Loan for wedding to help you create a memorable day.

Availing of a Personal Loan

Applying for a wedding loan in India isn’t hard, especially since Personal Loan eligibility isn’t too strict. Any salaried individual, earning a monthly sum of INR 18,000 at a known organisation for over three years can avail of a Personal Loan. Other criteria for taking out a loan include a minimum and maximum age limit; you have to be between the ages of 21 and 60 years. You could apply for a wedding loan online with financial institutions like Bajaj Finserv that offer Personal Loan of up to Rs.25 lakh. You could also try availing of a joint loan with your spouse or parents.

If you are a parent who is now retired and wants to take a loan for your child’s wedding, you may do so against your pension. Senior citizens are permitted to take loans of up to Rs.5 lakh until the age of 70.

What are the Documents Necessary for a Wedding Loan?

If you are a salaried professional, the documents required for a Personal Loan include bank and financial statements for the last three months, identification proof from the company you work with, work experience documents, and other personal documents.

If you are a self-employed professional, you will have to submit your ITR statements for the last three years, and will be required to have posted a minimum profit of Rs.2 lakhs.

Factors to Remember

Before you take a Personal Loan, it is important that you consider two important factors. The first is your capacity to pay off the loan every month. You must be able to afford your EMIs. There are simple methods to calculate your preferred EMI on a loan and correspondingly, the total loan tenure. Once you’ve done that, you’ll be free to decide on the scale of your wedding.

The second factor is your lender and the Personal Loan interest rates that are made available to you. There is no way to know whether a given bank will offer you the best principal, tenure, and rate of interest, so make a habit of engaging in thorough market research before you fill out an application form. You could apply online for a Personal Loan at organisations like Bajaj Finserv, who offer Flexi Personal Loans at low interest rates.

Life can be unexpected and it is important that you are prepared for any surprises lurking around the corner. Whether it’s buying a home or starting a company, we all have goals. But some of us really have no idea about financial planning and its importance. Maintaining your personal finance plays a crucial role in securing the futures of you and your family and should not be taken lightly. Plan out your budget to accomplish short term, as well as, long-term goals.

What is Financial Planning Anyway?
Financial planning acts as a solution to convert your ambitions into reality. You decide in advance how much to spend in a specific time frame with the funds that you have at your disposal. When you decide to organise your finances, you should make a solid blueprint of your incomes, objectives, procedures, policies, and budgets. You plan your money saving and expenditure to achieve two objectives.

Ensuring the Availability of Funds in Any Situation
You need funds for day-to-day expenses, loan payments, or to purchase and maintain long-term assets. Usually, the main objective of financial planning is to ensure you have sufficient funds to keep your life stable. It also ensures that you have cash available to meet unforeseen expenses. But always remember that if you are cash strapped, you could also try availing of a loan.

Not Raising Excess Funds
If you have surplus funds, you must plan what to do with that money. This is because leaving excess funds idle is as bad as running into a shortage of funds. Leaving funds idle can be a great loss in terms of opportunity cost. A great way to make your money work for you is by setting up a fixed deposit in financial institutions like Bajaj Finserv, who offer high security for your investments.

The Importance of Having a Financial Plan
Planning out your finances from month to month will help you give your financial decisions some direction. You can understand how each of your decisions affect your standing by recognising and prioritising your financial goals. Once you’ve covered these aspects you could start saving up for unexpected circumstances. Here are a few reasons why it’s imperative for you to understand the importance of financial planning.

Improving Cash Flow and Available Capital
When you begin planning your finances, managing income becomes easier. Planning will help you understand how much money you need to pay off your recurring bills, taxes, or any other payments.

By keeping an eye on your expenses and spending patterns each month, you will be able to manage your money better. Careful budgeting, reduced expenditure, and tax planning will help you save more income each month and increase your cash flow.

If there is an increase in your cash flow, you’ll find that you may have surplus capital. You can then consider investing to improve your overall financial stability.

The Security of Your Loved Ones
Providing financial security for your family is important when deciding how to plan your finances. Ensure that you have proper insurance policies and coverage for your entire family so that you can rest easy. Plus, the savings that you accumulate as a result of a good financial plan can help you out in difficult situations.

Investment Planning
When you begin your financial planning, it is highly important to consider what investment risks you’re willing to take. This will help you choose the right investments to complement your needs, ambitions, and personality. You could invest in mutual funds in non-banking financial corporations like Bajaj Finserv, who will help you diversify your assets.

Asset ManagementAsset Management
Assets are important, but many of them come with liabilities attached. You must ensure that your assets do not become a liability in the future. One of the best tips to manage personal finances is to determine the actual value of your assets and cancel out or settle the liabilities attached to them. This can only be done once you have a thorough knowledge of your finances.

Improved Financial Understanding
When you set yourself realistic financial goals and work towards them, you will have a better understanding of your fiscal position. Chances are, you will also be able to develop some easy ways to manage your finances.

Adequate Savings
It is useful to have a few easily liquefiable investments, which can be used in times of need. You could also take a Personal Loan from companies like Bajaj Finserv, who offer loans of up to 25 lakhs.

When we come across jargon like money management, most of us tend to imagine big, successful corporate companies. However, in today’s world, it is imperative for each and every individual to efficiently manage their finances because this paves the way to a better financial future.

How can I Manage Personal Finances and Save Money?
If you are looking to manage your finances successfully, you need to be aware of several personal money management methods. Here are a few useful money management tips for beginners to follow.

1. Create a Budget
Develop a habit of maintaining a budget to handle your monthly expenses. Doing this routinely lets you keep track of all your transactions and gives you the lowdown on your basic spending patterns. This will also help you avoid certain unnecessary expenses that pop up along the way. So, when you make a budget tracker, make sure to include all household bills, insurance premiums, personal care items, one-time expenses, etc. Also, plan your expenditure so that it stays within your income range.

2. Save! Save! Save!
One of the most popular money saving tips is that it is never too early to start saving. Stick to the basics, start small, but keep increasing your savings. Over time, try and turn this into a habit. Set saving goals, segregate them into two categories, namely short-term and long-terms goals, and save accordingly. If you have some savings and are looking to maximise your wealth, opt for a fixed deposit. NBFCs like Bajaj Finserv offer Fixed Deposits with easy online access.

3. Establish an Emergency Fund
Having a contingency fund is absolutely critical to your financial well-being. Instead of ordering out every weekend or watching a movie every Friday night, deposit that money into an emergency fund. This will equip you with much-needed funds during crunch situations.

4.Avoid Unnecessary Debts
Debts can hang like daggers over your head. The best route to take is to avoid them. Pay for groceries with your debit card instead of your credit card. This will ensure that you spend only the amount you have at your disposal. This will also stop you from accumulating credit card debt. If you already have debts to pay, begin by clearing debt on loans with the highest interest rate. You can also choose to consolidate your debts. Lenders like Bajaj Finserv offer Personal Loans of up to INR 25 lakh with instant approval.

5. Invest and Build a Portfolio
Aside from your savings and emergency fund, save some money to invest in mutual funds, bonds and stocks. Several financiers like Bajaj Finserv, offer Mutual Fund investments with low transaction costs to help you out. These avenues tend to provide you with high returns. However, these are all high-risk ventures. So study the market in depth, understand each product and pick up useful money management tips before investing.

6. Prioritise Your Interests
For instance, if you love travelling, work on a travel fund rather than buying expensive gadgets you rarely use. You may eventually spend this money but it will be on an experience that you value more and on a task that you think is more important. Thus, putting your money where your values lie is an important step towards effective money management.

These simple money management tips will get you started towards financial freedom. It may take some trial and error to get things right, but with enough persistence you will ultimately reach your goal.

Credit cards can sometimes engage most of your monthly income towards paying off debt. This situation most commonly arises when you borrow more than you can afford and when you have significant debts to repay but insignificant funds to pay from.

While this sort of problem needs to be dealt with through careful financial planning and re-strategizing, there are certain sure-shot ways to paying off credit card debts.

1.Consolidate Your Debts
You should consider debt consolidation if you have to repay debt from more than one credit card. This process lets you combine several monthly payments into one that has a lower rate of interest.

One of the most common options of consolidating your debt is to apply for a personal loan. You can consider borrowing from lenders like Bajaj Finserv, who offer Personal Loans of up to INR 25 lakh.

Alternatively you could also use your house as collateral to obtain a loan and clear off all your debts. Once done, you will be left with a single debt which you can pay off through simple EMIs. Several NBFCs like Bajaj Finserv offer loans against properties up to INR 21 crore.

2. Plan Your Expenses
A great way to start repaying your credit card debts is by designing a monthly expenditure plan. List out all the expenses that you incur in a month and determine the things that you can steer clear of till you are free of debt. Stick to this plan until your finances are absolutely in the clear.

3.Take Expensive Debts off the List
When you are planning to repay your credit card debts, always make sure to place cards with high debts on top priority. Pool in your monetary resources and work towards paying the debt on these cards, first. Paying off debts raises your credit score as you lower your debt utilisation ratio, i.e., the ratio of debt you owe to the amount of credit you have available.

4. Pay More than the Minimum
Yes. Always make sure to pay more than the minimum amount. Because if you make a habit of paying the minimum interest, there’s a definite chance that you will carry the debt over for a long, long time.

5. Work on a Contingency Fund
Try to develop the healthy habit of maintaining a contingency fund to tackle unforeseen monetary situations. Now, keep this idea in mind and work towards building one, so that you can bail yourself out of such situations.

6. Tap into Your Savings
If you have a considerably high debt to repay, it’s probably a good time to tap into your savings. This doesn’t mean you have to empty the account entirely. Instead, withdraw just enough to reduce your burden. This can also help you in paying off debts quickly.

Credit cards will be your financial saviours only if you have a solid plan of repaying the resulting debt. So always be sure to have a payment plan ready before jumping into a purchase.

In recent times, many of those searching for financial aid in the country have come across closed doors and weary bank managers. The sole reason behind each loan seeker’s disappointment is usually a bad credit score. The importance of maintaining a good score can’t be stressed enough, especially if you’re looking to take out a loan yourself. “What’s a credit score?” you may ask. Well, it’s a simple statistical indicator that determines the likelihood of you paying back a loan which you’ve borrowed. Let’s look at it like this, if you want to buy a car, you’ll probably look through a ton of magazines and reviews online to choose the one that suits you best. It’s kind of the same for banks and financial companies as well—they’re looking to loan out money, but they don’t know who their safest bet is. And that’s why they refer to the credit rating.

Financial institutions make the most profitable decisions by using the credit score as a primary indicator. So why is it important to maintain a good credit score? Let’s just say that you won’t ever be able to take a loan if you’ve got a bad rating. Here’s how it works.

The CIBIL Score And Its Components
In India, there are 4 major credit bureaus that gather information related to a person’s credit history and spending habits. These agencies formulate the credit score based on different parameters. The first and foremost of these 4 bureaus is the Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited (CIBIL), set up in 2000 by the Indian government to play a critical role in the country’s financial system.

There are several ways to maintain a good credit score, and they all revolve around the different aspects of the CIBIL rating system. Every month, CIBIL receives the financial history of individuals who’ve taken out loans from various banks and credit institutions in India. Using this information, the organisation computes the credit score of each individual based on 5 parameters. These factors include your credit repayment history, which accounts for 35% of the score, and your current level of indebtedness, which makes up a further 30%. The amount of new credit that you’ve recently taken out or applied for affects your score as well, and carries a weightage of 10%. The diversity of your credit schemes makes for another 10% of the rating, while the last 15% is decided by the amount of time you’ve been using credit.

Below, you’ll find a few tips to keep a good credit score.

How To Maintain A Good Credit Score In India

The first thing you need to do is make your loan repayments on time.

Don’t be tempted to overextend your credit limit. In fact, if your credit utilisation ratio is above 30%, you’re considered a risky customer.

Limit the number of credit applications you make. Each time you apply for credit, the bank runs an inquiry into your CIBIL report to check your status. Too many of these inquiries tend to have a negative bearing on your credit score.

It’s essential that you regularly check your CIBIL report. People are liable to commit mistakes all the time, and you need to make sure that you don’t end up paying for such careless errors.

Availing of just one mode of credit, such as unsecured loans, can reflect quite poorly on your CIBIL score. With a greater mix of credit types—such as secured loans, mortgages and credit cards—you are likely to score higher than those who use a single kind of credit.

It’s important that you know how to maintain a good credit score, especially if you’re a potential loan seeker. For instance, if you want a beautiful house to live in, then chances are you’ll need a home loan. Building your own house in India could prove to be quite an expensive affair, and you’ll need financial aid to fulfil your dream. Bajaj Finserv gives home loans for this very purpose. Their online process is highly optimised, and given the right qualifications, your application will be approved in less than 3 minutes. You’ll find some of the lowest interest rates in the country on homes loans at Bajaj Finserv.

Setting up a business of your own is just as hard; it’d be incredibly difficult for you to fund your own business without external aid, and that’s only possible if your CIBIL rating is relatively flawless. If you’re looking at some quick financing options for your company, then you should definitely check out the business loans offered by Bajaj Finserv.

Bajaj Finance Limited, the lending and investment arm of Bajaj Finserv group, is one of the most diversified NBFCs in the Indian market catering to more than 6 million customers across the country. Headquartered in Pune, the company’s product offering includes Consumer Durable Loans, Lifestyle Finance, Personal Loans, Loan against Property, Small Business Loans, Home loans, Credit Cards, Two-wheeler and Three-wheeler Loans, Construction Equipment Loans, Loan against Securities and Rural Finance which includes Gold Loans and Vehicle refinancing Loans. Bajaj Finance Limited prides itself for holding the highest credit rating of FAAA/Stable for any NBFC in the country today.

When someone’s taking out a Personal Loan, the financier usually requires a guarantor. The guarantor is the individual who’ll be taking on the task of paying off the loan if the original debtor fails to do so. The reason a Personal Loan requires a guarantor is because it doesn’t need any kind of collateral; without a collateral in hand, the lender has no way of recovering the borrowed amount if the debtor defaults on the loan.

Anyone who fulfils the bank’s requirements, including family members, can become a guarantor for the loan you’re planning to take. For example the bank will accept your brother as a guarantor for Personal Loan, provided he fulfils the required criteria. This article examines the role of a guarantor in Personal Loans.

What You Need to Know Before Inking the Deal

If you’re thinking of becoming a guarantor for someone who’s taking a loan, there are a couple of things that you need to be fully aware of before you take on the task:

In case the borrower is unable to repay the loan, then you will be legally obliged to make the payments in his or her stead.

If the borrower defaults on the loan, then your credit rating will take a hit, making it hard for you to take another loan till it improves.

It may be difficult to take a loan for yourself after becoming a guarantor on another loan. This is because lenders usually take such developments into consideration while assessing loan applications.

Ensure that you know the Personal Loan interest rates, the EMI amount, and the loan tenure before agreeing to be a guarantor as all of these factors may begin to directly affect you in the future.

You should also be fully aware of the debtor’s financial condition and trustworthiness before you seal the deal.

Who Can Become a Guarantor in a Personal Loan

The person who will be taking on the role of guarantor needs to fulfil certain criteria. Let’s examine these requirements:

The guarantor’s level of income needs to be higher than that of the borrower’s.

It’s also important for the guarantor to have a good credit score, which indicates that you have a history of making payments on time.

You should also be fully aware of your responsibilities and rights before you sign.

Can You Opt out?

If you want to terminate your arrangement after you’ve signed the papers, then you will first need to go through the documents and see what the terms and conditions of revocation are. Then, you will have to notify both the lender and the borrower in writing. Once you do this, the lender will gauge the financial status of the debtor in order to make a decision.

Becoming a guarantor for a loan is not something to be taken lightly. The most important thing to do before you sign the agreement is to make sure that the borrower is trustworthy.

If you’re looking for some quick financial aid, then you can apply online for a Personal Loan with Bajaj Finserv. This company offers many benefits along with the loans it gives out, easing the burden on both the borrowers and the guarantors. You can also choose to apply for a home loan online at some of the lowest interest rates in the country.